


Day One Hundred Forty-One || Something Breaks

by 365daysofsasuhina



Series: 365 Days of SasuHina 2019 [141]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 13:32:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18918031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/365daysofsasuhina/pseuds/365daysofsasuhina
Summary: In a world dominated in almost every aspect by men, what is a woman - born to such a lot in life - to do? Broken and accepting her fate, Hinata follows her path blindly. But what awaits at the end may surprise her.





	Day One Hundred Forty-One || Something Breaks

One can only be strong for so long before something breaks.

All her life, Hinata had walked a set path. From the moment she was born, brought into this world as a girl, her father had only one goal.

Marry her off for wealth, influence, and power.

She could hold none of it on her own. Not in a world ruled and regulated by men. No...Hinata was simply an instrument in such a world. A means of acquisition. If she married well, her husband’s coffers, connections, would join forces with her father’s. And the cycle would begin anew.

Of course, that was not all she was useful for. Hinata would be expected to bear her spouse an heir. A boy, and hopefully more than one. Insurance in case one falls ill, or dies, or becomes a cripple. She will birth and mother a new generation.

Part of her couldn’t help but hope she would never have a daughter. To know she would bring another into such a life would be a great guilt.

At first, she’d thought that, perhaps, she’d had an out. If she scared off suitors, if she never wed, she would never be at her husband’s disposal. Bear no children. Submit to no one. But her father made it clear - princess or not - her ruination by age would leave him no choice but to oust her from his line. He’d stand for no such blight upon his honor. His reputation.

No...both his daughters would marry, and marry well. He would settle for nothing else.

So began her strict upbringing. Lessons, lessons, lessons. To be a woman of good breeding, she had to improve her mind, and her body. Music, singing, drawing, dancing, and the most common of the languages were drilled into her nearly every day from her youth. Some she found delight in - piano was an instrument she became enraptured with from an early age. Others...not so much. Her skills in drawing were...minimal. She simply lacked something in the art, a degree of natural talent to build upon. She could dance well enough, sing well enough...though both made her nervous to do with an audience.

All the while, Hinata endured her rigid lifestyle as best she could...though it often left her forlorn. To feel so without a purpose unless graced by the favor of a man. Had she no value on her own? Was she truly so dispensable? 

Was there any meaning in her life at all, beyond how it could serve others?

Several suitors began seeing her once she was sixteen. But every time a promising match arose, something went awry. 

Funny...she had only one goal. Ensnare a husband. It was all she had to do to begin the second half of her life’s journey. The training to acquire one would be complete, and then doing all he required once married would be her remaining task. But even in this...she could find no solace. No success.

When the fifth prospect fell through...Hinata found she could no longer bear it. Her hope - having whittled down to a sliver after all these years - finally disintegrated into dust.

She was broken.

Listless, nearly silent, she went about her days in a haze. No longer was she the curious, daydreaming child she’d once been. Then...then she felt cold as the grave, and just as robbed of a future.

...but when the hour felt most bleak, they were given one last chance.

Hiashi received a letter from a kingdom several borders to the west. Word, of course, traveled quickly in the royal circuits. Apparently, this king - Fugaku Uchiha, as he was called - had heard of their plight. And he wrote bearing a compromise.

At first, her father’s pride stung keenly.

“Second born? He expects me to marry my eldest daughter to his  _ second born? _ Is he mad?!”

Hinata watched her father’s tantrum with a hint of her own confusion. It was indeed a strange offer. Did Fugaku think that, due to her misfortunes, they were too desperate?

Her father wrote a scathing letter back, demanding an explanation.

And...he got one.

Fugaku, as it so happened, was the father of two sons, who - like Hiashi’s two daughters - were five years apart in age. His younger was Hinata’s year, and his elder five years their senior. Itachi was his name, and Fugaku had had great hopes for him.

But when he entered his fifteenth year...something began to change. He became ill, sickly, weak...and as of the king’s writing, having survived by some miracle to the age of twenty-three, relied on a wheeled chair to maneuver.

It all then became clear. Fugaku did not offer up his eldest son because he was simply incapable of becoming king. Even if he were to survive - and such a thing seemed very doubtful - long enough to bear an heir...his death, if married, would leave a queen of another land to rule over their own.

Fugaku didn’t want to so easily hand over control of his country. So, instead, he offered his younger son, Sasuke. Fit, bright, and a man any young lady would be safe with...or so Fugaku claimed.

Hiashi poured over the letter, pacing and thinking. There was more to this arrangement, after all. The land of his family, the Hyūga, had long been sparsely populated. They had land to spare. But...their coffers had been steadily depleting.

The Uchiha, on the other hand, were straining at their borders. Their treasury, however, was just as swollen from taxes on their abundant population.

_ If _ they were to join together...it would lead to an equilibrium. Fugaku could help Hiashi finance his kingdom...and in turn, Hiashi could help ease Fugaku’s lack of land. It seemed, in every respect, a practical union.

But Hiashi’s pride was a ravenous beast. To give up his heiress to a second born - even if he were in a clear line to become king. It seemed ludicrous!

...in the end, however, the lint in his coin purse spoke more loudly than his ego...and he agreed to meet them.

Hinata accompanied him.

The entire journey, she was silent. Father and daughter had nothing to say. They’d already discussed her manners, their bargains, and all things relating to their quest to - at last - find Hinata a husband.

They were received at the front entrance by Fugaku, who - though expectedly stiff - did his best to be polite and friendly.

Hiashi...did not.

Nose upturned as always, he’d then greeted the sons with equal disdain. Itachi was in his strange chair, and Sasuke at his side.

It was clear Hiashi had little good opinion about a sickly son.

Hinata saw it first, then - the fire in Sasuke’s eyes. In a moment, she knew just how ardently he cared for his brother.

...strange. She’d never felt that way about her sister. The pair were raised mostly apart, and Hiashi’s bias was...evident. But these two were clearly close. It made her feel...strange. Almost...hopeful.

As the kings made to begin their bartering, the trio of heirs were given leave to the gardens.

...something about it sparked something else in Hinata’s heart. Though the Hyūga grounds were well-kept, flowers were rare. Her mother had loved them so, and after her passing...Hiashi deemed them too painful a reminder. It didn’t stop Hinata from loving them, too...but here, here there were more than could scarcely be counted…!

After a time, Itachi was recalled, and the young pair left alone. She could feel Sasuke’s eyes on her, and sense his lingering uncertainty. She, too, wasn’t sure what to think. There was a kind of...peace here. Hinata had accepted her fate long ago, and yet...already, there were signs that, perhaps, she could even be happy here.

When was the last time she was happy…?

It was when Sasuke gifted her a bloom, tucked into her hair, that the cold in her chest felt...lessened. Instead, it warmed with something new. Something exciting.

A few of her fragmented pieces suddenly felt...whole.

Staring up at him, there’d been a moment to consider before they, too, were fetched from the gardens. In a daze, she’d followed, unsure what else to do.

Maybe - just maybe - there was hope to be had here.

**Author's Note:**

> Gosh this prompt gave me trouble!
> 
> A jump back into the royalty!verse, and a bit of a peek into Hinata's side of things in the beginning. A little rushed, given my late hour of getting to work on this, but hopefully still worth a read, aha~
> 
> Anyway, I'm very tired, and I've got some irl things still to do, so I'd best call it here. Thanks for reading!


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